"I need artillery support! NOW!" roared the terminator captain, desperately stumbling backwards. His trusted assault cannon was empty and around him, his brothers were failing to their knees one by one. Only brother Azigus was still standing tall, his heavy flamer projecting a shield of fire around his comrades.
Warp pressure reaching critical levels. Aegis shielding integrity at 17%. Recommend immediate evacuation. The adjutant warned in his ear.
"We do not run! We do not surrender!" Panting heavily, cold sweat running down his back, the captain swung around, trying to get a grip on the situation. But even his enhanced vision could not seem to penetrate the white fog that engulfed them, seeping in from all sides. Even the inferno of the heavy flamer seemed but a flickering candle in the heavy mist.
"Where is that artillery support?!"
A daemonette came rushing out of the mists, shrieking wildly, black eyes wide with madness. Before the captain could raise his nemesis force weapon a tentacle of mist came rushing after the daemonette, wrapping itself around the daemon's feet, tripping it over. Clawing desperately at the ground, the daemon was mercilessly pulled back into the fog. The captain met the daemon's eyes before the white wall swallowed it whole. He had never seen such a look on a daemon before.
The captain did not hesitate but immediately fed the coordinates for the direction the daemonette had disappeared into his adjutant.
"Now! All available units engage this target! Fire! FIRE!" Forcing his body forwards he snatched up a storm bolter from one of his fallen comrades. Only slowly and reluctantly did his body respond to his iron will. While his mind remained unbroken his body was failing him. Swearing under his breath he forced his arm straight and pulled the trigger. Round after round raced forward, swallowed by the mists. But the fog bank just kept closing in. One by one his comrades disappeared from sight. Soon the weapon was empty, the last round spent. The captain sank down on his knees. He couldn't even see the flame from brother Azigus anymore. Strands of white darkness were snaking up the captain's legs like vile vines, looking for a way in.
"Providing fire support. For the emperor!" echoed a hard metallic voice from behind him. The earth shook as a giant plated foot was planted firmly next to him. The wall of slate grey armour rising up from it was a most welcoming sight. As was the twin cyclone missile launcher on either side of the dreadnaught. A split second later the weapons erupted, sending a hurricane of missiles rushing forwards. From behind the dreadnaught brilliant beams of red light cut through the mists like knives as two land raider heavy tanks pulled up, immediately opening fire with all available weapons. Spilling forth from the bowels of the tanks two more grey knight terminator assault squads emerged, backed up by servitors and other support troops. Assault cannons and storm bolters joined the chorus of destruction.
Under the continuous barrage, the mists, ever so slowly, started to pull back. The captain slowly felt power returning to his body and soon he could no longer stand the shame of lying on the ground while his brothers around him were standing tall. Servitors swarmed him, reloading his weapons, refuelling his armour, sending revitalizing drugs surging through his battered body. With a defiant roar, the captain rose around and swung his beloved assault cannon forward. The weapon hummed to life again and a torrent of armour-piercing explosive projectiles, each one potent enough to reduce most vehicles to rubbish raced forwards, punching holes in the mists. As the fogbank retreated his squad comrades again rose one by one, rejoining the fray. Soon the best of mankind had carved out a clear space around them where the air was free from vapour.
Signalling weapons hold and bringing the inferno to halt the captain stepped backwards, placing his hand on the dreadnaught, looking gratefully up at the towering daemon-hunting death machine.
"Your arrival is most welcome, brother!"
"I live to serve." Rang the response from deep within the metal body where the remains of his brother were enshrined. The metal reverberated under the captain's hand as the deep voice spoke. The captain turned to the other grey knight squads.
"What's the situation? Report."
"Chaos forces decimated. Full teleporter link with orbiting fleet almost established. Soon we will be able to bring in further support."
"Good, good. What is the status of the primary target?"
Both of the remaining squad commanders fell silent.
"What is the status? Speak!" barked the captain.
"Sir. The daemons. They..."
"Yes? Speak clearly!"
"Sir they were not running away from us. They were running straight towards us. Right into our weapons. I've never seen anything like it. It's like they wanted to be banished."
Under his massive helmet, the gnarled and scarred terminator captain gritted his teeth.
"So we can assume the primary target is intact?"
"Yes. Sir."
"It is imperative that..." but the captain didn't get any further. A huge shadow stepped out from the mists. A massive bullheaded keeper of secrets, the most feared of Slanneshi daemons. Not hesitating the grey knights immediately opened fire. Bullets tore the daemon's flesh to shreds, the daemonic aura seemingly impotent before the onslaught. But no matter how many hits the grey knights scored the daemon simply stood still, neither advancing or retreating. The bovine head slumped to the side. The clawed hands hung listlessly to the side. The eyes were dead and cold. And through every bullet hole, the mists snaked in and out like worms.
The captain raised his hand. "Hold your fire!"
The daemon's limp and bullet-ridden head jerked upwards. It spoke through unmoving lips.
Leave. Now.
"We do not take orders from daemons." The captain meanwhile deftly reloaded his assault cannon. The land raider swung their twinned laser cannons around, targeting the daemon. Next to captain him the servitors were reloading the dreadnought massive missile launcher. The two squads behind him moved up to flank him, Nemesis force weapons at the ready. The daemons head twisted around, empty eyes staring down at the terminators. The body slowly rose off the ground until the legs hung under it like empty slabs of meat.
Your toys are as meaningless as your lives. Leave now before my hunger breaks the promise I made to your master into a thousand pieces. A thousand tiny pieces, all cold and dead. For an instant the voice shivered and shook. Please, you don't have much time.
"We do not fear you. And we have faced far worse things than you."
If only it were so. The daemon's voice was almost a sob, filled with a heartbreaking sadness. Around them the mists, previously still started to swirl. From nowhere the wind started to howl. The daemon's eyes started to swirl, two whirlpools of utter darkness igniting deep within the mangled sockets. The voice hardened again.
You think there is anything you can do to me that hasn't already been done? You think you can fight death with death? The daemon opened its arms wide and threw back its head. Two black wings of oily smoke erupted from it back, racing upwards towards the sky. Every single weapon the grey knight hunting expedition possessed opened fire at once. The daemons body literally disintegrated under the overwhelming firepower.
When the dust settled the grey knights stood victorious, humanity's enemy at their feet, broken before their might. For a moment. Then they started dying. A horrifying metallic screech rang out as vipers of mist and smoke slipped into the dreadnaught. His powered hands scratched and clawed desperately at his chest, where the captain knew the remnants of his body resided. Then he fell silent and the metal construct collapsed to the ground. Thick funnels of mists engulfed the outlying squad, dragging them into the fogbanks from whence they never returned. Nemesis force weapons sliced impotently at the mists, glowing with power but cutting only empty air. The deadly mists instantly reformed, engulfing the terminators. The captain's intercom soon filled with the death screams of his brothers. From the remnants of the daemon rose a broken and dirty little girl, eyes black as the night, wings of oily smoke beating the mists into a killing frenzy.
So hungry. So much life. So rich and succulent. More! I want more! MORE!
"We need support! Request..." But before the captain could finish the familiar cold call of the warp yanked him away like a giant fish hook through right through the gut. When reality shimmered into place again he was lying on the transport deck of the Emperor's Hammer, the battleship that had brought them into action. Spread around him were his comrades. Some were moving. Most were not. Wearing full power armour, inquisitor Amaran stepped up to the captain, offering his hand.
"We have them. Helmsman, take us out of here immediately!" the Inquisitor barked into the ship's intercom.
"Commencing emergency warp jump, brace for impact" crackled the speakers in response.
"So I take it the trap failed," the Inquisitor mused pulling the captain to his feet.
"The target took the bait, just like you thought. The daemons, they were annihilated. But it shames me to say that we failed to master this new foe." The captain looked around. Not many knights were rising from the ground. "We paid dearly for our failure. If the teleporter had not come online when it did we would all be gone."
The inquisitor put his hands on the terminator captain's shoulder and looked him straight in the face, big brown sure eyes steady and sure.
"Brother, listen to me. Your honour is intact. The fault lies with me. I underestimated the target. I was soft. That will not happen again."
The captain nodded solemnly. After one last look towards the fallen knights, the inquisitor turned around and started to walk up the railed staircase towards the cargo elevator.
"Next time we will come bearing the Exterminatus."